Shanghai Isaac Stern International Violin Competition Postponed Until 2021

April 21, 2020, 4:33 PM · The third Shanghai Isaac Stern International Violin Competition, originally scheduled for August 2020, has been postponed until 2021, due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Nancy Zhou, first prize winner in the Shanghai Isaac Stern International Violin Competition 2018.

"The health and safety of the participants, jury members, staff, and audience are our highest priority, and the difficulties connected to the epidemic do not allow us to guarantee a secure competition in the previously planned timeframe," competition organizers said in a statement. "We believe it would be best to reschedule in order to ensure the competition takes place under the best possible circumstances."

The competition is now scheduled for August 10-29, 2021.

"This year marks Isaac Stern’s 100th birthday, and for this reason we have decided that although the new competition dates will be in 2021, it will still be titled the '2020 SISIVC' to commemorate Stern’s centenary," competition organizers said. "Isaac Stern’s belief in music obliges us to respect his commitment to excellence, and any attempt to hold the event under duress would not uphold his standards. We are all currently under attack by this world pandemic, and we must remember that while a society without culture can survive, a society with culture elevates us."

Applications were closed for the competition on January 20, and there will be no new applications. The deadline for pre-selection video submissions has been extended, though, because the pandemic created complications for submitting videos by the February deadline. A new video deadline will be announced in August 2020. Those who were able to submit videos will also have the option of submitting a new one.

Previous winners of the Shanghai competition include Nancy Zhou of the United States, who won first prize in the 2018 competition; and Mayu Kishima of Japan, who won first prize in the 2016 competition.

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